ARDC dismisses complaint against Mangieri

Ninth Circuit Judge Paul Mangieri says his political opponents are playing dirty politics.

On Thursday, the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission of the Supreme Court of Illinois sent Mangieri a letter indicating it had reviewed a complaint filed against him and dismissed it.

MATT HUTTON

Ninth Circuit Judge Paul Mangieri says his political opponents are playing dirty politics.
On Thursday, the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission of the Supreme Court of Illinois sent Mangieri a letter indicating it had reviewed a complaint filed against him and dismissed it.

Mangieri released a statement saying he was pleased with the ARDC’s quick decision. He said it showed “that the complaint and the reporting of it to The Register-Mail was baseless, politically motivated and completely without merit.”

Mangieri, who is running for election to the judicial post he was appointed to last year, said he thought politics played a role not only in the filing of the complaint but the fact that it was made public.

“There appears to be a new style of politics being played by a handful of politicians and would-be politicians in Knox County that I have never seen before. I don’t understand it, and I am not going to play it. It’s ugly and it’s unfair. It’s unfair to the people that they attack, it’s unfair to their family, friends and supporters, and it’s unfair and insulting to the voters of Knox County who are tired of this,” he wrote. “Unfortunately, given the character of those involved, mark my words, we are likely to see something like this again. The public won’t buy it, but my question is whether the press is going to continue to buy into this politics of hate and give it a voice.”

When contacted, Mangieri would not say who he was speaking about. He said his statement “speaks for itself.”

Mangieri’s opponent in the Democratic primary, Knox County Public Defender Jim Harrell, said he did not make the complaint.

Harrell, who also has had ARDC complaints filed against him, said he did not think Mangieri’s statement was directed at him.

“I said when this campaign began we would be running on our records and reputation. I have not, nor will I, bring forth any allegations against my opponent. I have not or will not personally bring those forward. What the press and other individuals in Knox County do — I have no control over what other individuals may do,” he said. “I’m still looking forward to a campaign based on the community and the Ninth Circuit. I anticipate the campaign to be positive. Based on the past few months, I anticipate Paul will run the same.”

Last week Harrell also said he did not believe politics had played a role in the complaint.

“It’s unlikely that the investigation would be politically motivated in light of the number of other investigations going on since March,” he said.

County Board member Jan Occhi confirmed last week that she and Treasurer Robin Davis spoke with ARDC investigators about Mangieri.

Occhi’s husband, Mike, and Davis are both members of Harrell’s campaign committee. Davis said that was not relevant because she is on other campaign committees as well and it had nothing to do with her being interviewed by the ARDC. Davis objected to the characterization that the investigation was politically motivated, saying she and Occhi had nothing to do with making the complaint and she did not know who did. Occhi and Davis did not report the complaint to The Register-Mail.

Anyone can file a complaint with the ARDC. If the commission determines that a complainant provided sufficient evidence of misconduct against an attorney who is accused of having “engaged in illegal, unethical or dishonest conduct,” it will launch an investigation and determine if formal disciplinary charges are needed. Mangieri said last week he had no knowledge of an investigation or a complaint filed against him with the ARDC.

In a letter dated Thursday, the ADRC wrote to Mangieri, “Please be advised we have reviewed the recent correspondence from (name redacted) and we have determined that no investigation is warranted in this matter.”

Most complaints made to the ARDC are dismissed without any reprimands. In 2006, about 5,800 complaints were filed and only 215 resulted in disciplinary action.

“The fact that the commission did not even ask me to respond to the complaint clearly demonstrates that a neutral third party recognized that the allegations raised were not even worthy of a response,” Mangieri said.

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